Artist: Matchbox Twenty
Album: Yourself or Someone Like You
Released: October 1, 1996
The late 1990s was a confusing time for music, rock in particular. By 1997, the grunge era had unofficially come to a close; Nirvana and Soundgarden had both disbanded, while Pearl Jam, never fully comfortable embracing mainstream success, took their career in new and interesting directions. The slightly heavier alternative metal of the 2000s, embodied by the likes of Breaking Benjamin, Seether, and Chris Cornell-led Audioslave, was still a few years away. Something had to fill the void.
During this time, several bands tried to keep the grunge sound somewhat going. Bands such as Bush, Collective Soul, and Foo Fighters (the latter led by Dave Grohl of Nirvana) emerged with more polished and radio-friendly lyrics and guitar riffs that were largely but not fully realized in many popular grunge albums from a few years earlier. Although they didn't emerge on the scene until a couple of years after these other bands, Matchbox Twenty's breakthrough Yourself or Someone Like You is one of my favorite albums from this time.
I don't remember when exactly I first listened to or obtained my copy of this CD... but I know that I was 12 years old when "Push" was on the radio constantly during the summer of 1997. The song didn't grab my attention right away, but after listening to it many times on the radio, I really started to appreciate it. It's a slow-paced song with simple lyrics ("I wanna push you around/Well I will...I wanna take you for granted"); yet the awesome riffs and angst-ridden voice of Rob Thomas blend together to create an emotionally powerful song. (Some feminist groups were upset that they would release a song about a man physically abusing a woman, until the band later explained that it is actually about a woman emotionally abusing a man.) Today, "Push" remains one of my all-time favorite songs.
Within the next year or so, I heard two more songs played frequently on the radio: the slightly faster "3AM", about Thomas's mother; and the even faster and slightly more upbeat "Real World", in which Thomas contemplates how life would be if he were someone else. I decided that I had to hear the rest of the album. I think I may have borrowed it from a friend first, and I can't even remember whether I bought it or received it as a gift. Nonetheless, it quickly became one of my favorite CDs. "Back 2 Good" was later released as a single and may have been the most commercially successful song from the album. I really like the song, but not quite as much as the other three hits I mentioned, possibly because it is so tough to follow those up. I will say that it's longer and not as tightly composed as most of their other songs, which is why it surprised me that it was so popular.
The tone of this album is mainly that of depression, anger, anxiety, and frustration. However, I wouldn't call this a "dark" album, and it certainly isn't overly dramatic. What's nice is that there is a solid balance between slow, contemplative tracks and faster, more positive ones. With the exception of "Push", I personally have always preferred Matchbox Twenty when they are a little more upbeat, such as in "Long Day", "Argue", and "Girl Like That". "Busted" and "Damn" are both kind of in between the two. "Busted" used to be one of my favorites, and while I still like it, over time it has moved down my list slightly. Meanwhile, "Kody", which is maybe the most "depressing" (for lack of a better term) track on the album, didn't used to be one of my favorites. However, it has really started to grow on me over the years. The album does end with a slight thud, as I think that "Shame" and "Hang", two of the most low-key tracks on the album, are probably my two least favorites as well.
If I had one very small issue with this album, it's that several of the songs are a little repetitive. However, it's difficult to get upset about that when most of the songs are so good. After many years, this is still a CD that I find myself frequently listening to, and it is certainly one of the best albums to come out of what was in many ways a lost era for music.
Track #, Name of Song, Duration, My Rating
1. Real World (3:51) - 10/10
2. Long Day (3:45) - 9/10
3. 3AM (3:47) - 10/10
4. Push (3:58) - 10/10
5. Girl Like That (3:45) - 9/10
6. Back 2 Good (5:40) - 9/10
7. Damn (3:20) - 8/10
8. Argue (2:57) - 9/10
9. Kody (4:03) - 9/10
10. Busted (4:17) - 8/10
11. Shame (3:34) - 8/10
12. Hang (3:47) -7/10
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